COMMUNICATION DESIGN

A FUTURE IN
COMMUNICATION
DESIGN
WHAT IS COMMUNICATION DESIGN?
When you browse a website, get drawn to an ad
or interact with something on social media, you’re
responding to the work of communication designers.

Communication design, traditionally known as

graphic design, is the creation of visuals that spread
messages and meanings in new and relevant ways. To
do this, communication designers use new emergent
media and technologies to collaborate and be
responsive to the needs of businesses, communities
and organisations.

The aim of communication design is to make an

impression on people’s understanding, or provoke a
change in behaviour or attitude, by communicating
messages to identified audiences for specific
purposes. While usually visual, the message can also
be multi-sensory or interactive.

It’s a rapidly changing environment. Career paths are

continually redefined so graduates need to be adept
and agile across a range of specialised activities and
media including web design, branding, interaction
design, UX and UI design, illustration, advertising,
media design, social technologies, photography,
graphic design and art direction.

More than ever designers need to understand and

connect with their audiences and design solutions
that place people, communities and environments at
the centre.

Are you an influencer? Do you want to sustainably

and impactfully affect people’s knowledge, attitudes
and behaviour? Can you come up with lots of different
creative ideas? Can you visualise things easily? Do you
have strong drawing and storytelling skills and a clear
or creative written style? Do you have the ability to
communicate your ideas and intentions to others? If
you have, or wish to develop, some of the above, then
great career options nationally and globally may open
up for you through communication design.
 OUTLOOK AND TRENDS
The design and creative sector is dynamic, highly YouTube can reach over 10 times the audience
competitive and fast changing. To stand out, designers numbers than TV advertising, according to MacGregor
must keep on developing creatively and conceptually, Total Ad Ratings.
and stay up-to-date with current practice and future
trends and technologies. Gig economy expanding – The growing global trend
among design and advertising firms to choose to
Interactive is key – As organisations strive to work with contractors and freelancers, is creating a
utilise latest mobile technologies, opportunities are new portfolio style workforce. Often referred to as
expanding for interactive design, user experience the gig economy, this creates initial opportunities for
design and social media. Design processes, visual graduates and can provide employers with a test bed
and digital skill sets and conceptual understandings for a range of emerging graduate talent.
underpin communication design practices for a range
of digital and web-based platforms, interfaces and Collaborative approach growing – Another
collateral, including posters, magazines and analogue increasingly popular approach, Codesign encourages
and digital publications. collaboration across a range of stakeholders, local
and global. Codesign is increasingly common when
Visual vocab – Continued development of visual working on complex projects or to address ‘wicked
vocabulary is driving a lot of marketing and design, problems’. Design graduates need strong written, visual
according to Quickbase Intuit blog. Imagery, like and oral communication skills to work collaboratively
photos, emojis, animated GIFS, video snippets and with experts on different sections of a joint project.
carousel images are increasingly preferred to text.

WORK SETTINGS commercial work. For example, a typeface designer

might design and place an experimental typeface
Graduates who have an innate understanding of visual onto their portfolio website alongside other client
communication, combined with the ability to integrate commissioned typefaces. If it is a good design, other
design skills, are sought after by design and advertising designers will pay to use it.
agencies, print production and publishing companies, film
and multimedia companies, web design companies, and
sign-making companies. CAREER SECTOR OPPORTUNITIES
Some find employment in small boutique design studios Communication and marketing
specialising in branding, moving image, packaging, Designers interested in communicating specific
publishing or a combination of these. They will usually messages to the public find careers in design studios,
work with a small team of more senior designers. Other advertising agencies, marketing departments and
graduates join large design teams within major design or creative consultancies. Specialisations include
printing companies. branding, advertising, packaging, publishing,
presentation design, environmental graphic design
There is an increasing demand for designers to work in- and corporate communications.
house for non-design-related sectors, such as marketing
or media departments for radio stations, accounting firms, There is also high demand in social media roles
government departments and manufacturers. for communication design graduates’ visual
communication skills and understanding of virtual
Freelancing is another option for graduates, working on communities and networks.
a range of one-off contracts to build up networks and
clientele. Often, they team up with other graduates to form Digital media
small companies or collectives. Interaction is an increasingly large part of digital
media, with user interface (UI) design and user
Graduates also can start in design agencies as Mac experience (UX) becoming increasingly important
operators, working on existing designs and preparing in research and design processes. Digital media
design work for publication. That experience can lead into design skills are in high demand as mainstream
creative design roles. communications move into the ever-expanding digital
Not all work by designers is client commissioned or space, including mobile and tablet apps, interactive
commercially driven. Sometimes designers work for kiosks, videos, animation etc. Positions include
an exhibition or create their own designs while doing interface designer, graphic designer and digital
media designer.
Management PERSONAL QUALITIES
Graduates in communication design also can enter
studio and agency management roles, including • A creative risk-taker and experimenter
account management (finding new clients and looking • Empathetic
after existing clients’ accounts), studio production and • Curious with strong interest in the world and culture
marketing. There is high demand for people with design
management skills who are well organised and have • Artistic, imaginative, visual, agile, flexible, good at
excellent interpersonal skills. making connections
• Strong team orientation, highly organised and able to
meet deadlines

SALARY GUIDE
Pay range depends on company size and calibre of clients.

Mac operator graduate $30,000-$35,000

Graduate designer $39,000-$48,000

Intermediate designer $50,000-$65,000

Senior designer $65,000-$85,000

Digital creative designer $90,000-$120,000

Account manager $70,000-$90,000

RANGE OF SKILLS
Account director $100,000-$120,000
A range of ‘hybrid’ skills are required for a fast
changing and globally networked future to foster Sources: payscale.com, enz.org, Hays Salary Guide 2020, Robert
agility, adaptability, resilience, strategic thinking and Walters Salary Guide 2020, Careers NZ
collaboration. These include: Salary range is indicative of the New Zealand job market
• Capable of generating a range of ideas, willing to take at the time of publication (early 2021) and should only be
risks, yet be pragmatic and open to critiquing used as a guideline.
• Creative and technical skills to produce content for
distribution across all potential platforms
PROFESSIONAL REGISTRATION
• Understanding the impact of different platforms on
content development and digital work flow and how to Membership with Designers Institute of New Zealand
exploit technological advances (DINZ) is recommended.
• Hands-on digital integration experience and user
awareness
THE AUT ADVANTAGE
• Ability to work in cross-functional creative/technical
teams within and across companies to a brief and In addition to developing necessary technical skills,
deadline AUT communication design graduates learn to
• An understanding of intellectual property legislation research, analyse, think strategically, make informed
regarding piracy and the exploiting of intellectual design decisions, debate and present. AUT offers
property internationally studio pathways in visual communication, graphic
• Fundamental knowledge of layout, typography, design, advertising, branding, digital media design
hierarchy, colour, iconography, context, popular culture, and communication arts.
history, trends and influence
• Problem-solving skills and the ability to work
independently but also take ownership of projects FURTHER STUDY OPTIONS
whether single, multiple or concurrent
Further study in communication design is available at
• Competence with industry software Adobe Creative master’s and PhD level with a postgraduate certificate
Cloud (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop and moving for those exiting before completion of a master’s. AUT
image apps eg Premiere or After Effects) research areas include design innovation, technology
• Management, leadership, business and entrepreneurial and entrepreneurship, brand and strategy, sustainability
skills design, good health design, design education, design
• Strategic thinker history, animation and typography.
ZOE JARVIS
Designer at Serato
Bachelor of Design in Communication Design
– UX pathway

“I’m a junior web designer at Serato, an international DJ

music software company founded in New Zealand.
I love designing something for a purpose that goes
out into the world for people to interact with. My
role includes designing updates for pre-made pages,
redesigning old pages, creating new designs for
upcoming campaigns, sales and releases of new
hardware – all that stuff. Occasionally I do graphic work
including creating social media assets for an upcoming
campaign, or animations for YouTube videos.
I also get to work alongside the web and UX UI teams,
helping create cohesive designs across our company.
UX is user experience and UI is user interaction. If the
user experience isn’t good, users won’t come back, so
you always want to create a welcoming experience with
an easy flow no matter what you’re designing for. EMPLOYER COMMENT
Communication is a really big part of the work process
here and I feel my time at AUT, especially my final-year “Ideas are important – design without ideas is wallpaper.
project, allows me to work well within this area. A good designer also has to be able to present and sell
their ideas and designs. They also need to pay attention
Challenges in this area
to detail. That is what separates mediocrity from great
The constant speed of change within the web design
work. And they need talent.
industry is a big challenge. For example, 10 years ago
there was really only one screen size. Now you need Zoe’s portfolio demonstrated all these things. She was
design that is responsive and works on a tablet, desktop, recommended by colleagues I trust and she showcased
laptop and mobile. personal/illustrative work – something I always like to
see. I also personally believe drafting/drawing skills are
Landing a job
an asset to any designer.
I met Serato UX design/researcher Emma Pittar briefly
at a conference and she remembered me when she As a new graduate, you need to present your work well
came to our end of year show, liked my work and and demonstrate you understand the importance of
asked me to have a chat that ended up in me getting a simplicity and clarity. Don’t present work that is all over
job here. the place stylistically – show some consistency in style
and approach. Include personal work if relevant – this
Serato is such a surreal company to work for, I felt a bit
shows passion beyond commerce, indicates talent,
out of my depth when I first started. I was worried I’d
personality and initiative, and may help separate
mess up. I felt as a graduate I should know everything.
you from students with a more conventional graduate
But they were so welcoming and kept telling me to ask
portfolio.”
questions, that I’m only human and will need help. Once
I got used to the work processes, my initial worries Matthew Campbell Downes
faded and I started to feel part of the team.” Creative Director, Serato
COMMUNICATION DESIGN

USEFUL WEBSITES
Designers Institute of New Zealand
www.designersinstitute.nz

Design Assembly
www.designassembly.org.nz

The Big Idea

www.thebigidea.co.nz

Idealog
www.idealog.co.nz

Portfolio Recruitment
www.portfoliorecruitment.co.nz

FURTHER INFORMATION
For the most up-to-date communication design
information, visit our website:
www.aut.ac.nz/communication-design

EMPLOYABILITY & CAREERS

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information: 0800 AUT UNI (0800 288 864)
www.aut.ac.nz/enquire
studenthub@aut.ac.nz
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information: www.aut.ac.nz/enquire
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The information contained in this career sheet is

correct at time of printing, early 2021.

Cover image work by Stacey Purdon 2017,

Bachelor of Design in Communication Design